Operation Walk was founded in 1995
with the mission of providing free surgical treatments for patients in
developing countries. Ever since, the non-for-profit, volunteer organization
has performed thousands of procedures to treat debilitating bone and joint
conditions. The surgeries are provided for patients who would otherwise have no
access to the life-changing care. This past June, I was fortunate to be able to
volunteer with an Operation Walk team from Northwestern Orthopaedic Institute
travelling on a medical mission to Kathmandu.
Our
Operation Walk team consisted of four doctors—two surgeons, an internist, and
an anesthesiologist—three nurses, three medical technicians, a physical
therapist, and myself as a physical therapist’s assistant. The team performed fifteen
hip and knee replacements to restore pain-free mobility to patients ranging in
age from early-twenties to mid-eighties. The surgeries were performed at the
Nepal Orthopaedic Hospital, where our Op Walk team was also working to train
Nepali surgeons and staff with the goal of setting up the first joint
replacement program in Nepal.
Nepal is
most famous for Mt. Everest and the Himalayas, the world’s tallest mountain
range. The mountains, visible at above eye-level on the descent into and the
ascent from Kathmandu, are spectacular. Kathmandu, situated in a Himalayan
valley, is Nepal’s largest city and, according to the WHO, the most polluted
city in Asia. Most citizens in Kathmandu live in poverty with an income of less
than a few dollars per day and no access to clean water. Scheduled power
outages are a result of government rationing, as the power grid in Kathmandu is
insufficient for the city’s demands. The Nepal Orthopaedic Hospital has a
backup generator, but it remains disconcerting when power momentarily cuts out during
surgery. Still, the city is home to a rich religious and cultural history, with
ancient palaces and Buddhist and Hindu temples dating back hundreds of years,
including the most holy cremation site in Hindu, Pashupatinath Temple, which
dates to 400 A.D.
The streets of Kathmandu are a
buzzing and chaotic scattering of vehicles from the last hundred years.
Emaciated cows pick at trash heaps on the streets, while stray dogs duck into
alleyways to avoid the oncoming rush of two, three, and four-wheeled vehicles.
Monkeys prance along rooftops and religious men stroll along the streets in
strong robes of orange and red. At the time of our arrival, police in riot garb
prepared to constrain Maoist protests against the burgeoning democratic regime—formed
in 2006 when King Gyanedra relinquished sovereign power after a decade of civil
war and the murder-suicide of the Royal Family by his brother, the Crown Prince
Dipendra, in 2001.
The families that I met were strong
and welcoming. They were sincerely grateful for our help, and, although
communication was often limited to hand gestures, were incessant in expressing
thanks. Here is a photo of me with my slightly camera shy, tree-climbing friend
from the pediatric unit.
Traveling to Kathmandu was a
humbling and rewarding experience. The Operation Walk team restored mobility
and daily functionality to fifteen individuals, and I appreciate the
opportunity to be involved with such a valuable organization. Their next trip
is to Vietnam in early January, where they will perform over seventy joint
replacements.
Wilson Bowen, 5th year senior
